As a child of French-Canadian parents growing up in Saskatchewan, Jean Lambert loved the francophone scouting movement.
He started as a Cub in the 1930s and rose through the ranks, relishing his time in the outdoors and learning survival skills with his peers.
But when the Depression hit, his family joined the wave of Prairie migrants to B.C. looking to find work in the French-Canadian enclave of Maillardville. His father got a job at the Fraser Mills sawmill and Lambert, by then a young man, began working at a packing house on Brunette Avenue.
He longed for his scouting days and thought Maillardville, with so many French-speaking families, was ripe to start a troop. In 1955, with four fellow Knights of Columbus members (René Gamache, Lucien Ayotte and Napoléon Gareau), Lambert launched the local movement with 24 louveteaux (boys aged nine to 11 years).
It was a dream come true for Lambert but he had bigger plans, aiming to expand the organization across the province.
In 1957, Lambert and another leader drove for three days on U.S. Route 2 to reach Quebec. There, they studied under Les Scouts du Canada. It was a week Lambert will never forget.
“When we came back, we were full of enthusiasm,” the 92-year-old said in his Maillardville home last week. “We learned so much there.”
That same year, the Maillardville group doubled in size. And along with his cousin, Roger Bruneau, and the scout leaders’ wives (Suzanne Lambert, Alice Gamache, Lucille Bruneau and Amélie Gareau), they started the French Girl Guides.
Besides raising five daughters, working at Seagrams, being active with the Our Lady of Fatima parish council and serving as grand knight with the Knights of Columbus, Lambert spent countless hours growing the scouting movement in B.C.
Now, having officially marked the club’s 60th year with a fête last month at Sasamat Lake (along with 16 francophone scouts from Edmonton), Lambert is reflective.
He proudly wears his uniform, which now includes a 60th anniversary badge on the left side. He’s also is keen to show off his Medaille Jean Vanier, the highest public service honour in Canada.
Still, it’s the legacy he’s left with his family that brings him the most joy.
His daughters, Monique and Diane, have held many roles at the group, district and national levels. Another daughter, Pat, was a leader while Diane’s son, Ben Johnston, is the current leader of the Maillardville scouts.
Roger Bruneau’s brothers also became leaders, as did their children.
And many Maillardville pioneering families followed suit, with surnames such as Salles, Kraan, Lizée, Bouvier, Roy, Ledet, Boire, Chabot, Charpentier, Coulombe and Bradley.
Among the scouts under Lambert’s wing was Richard Stewart, now the city’s mayor.
“Jean is truly a scout at heart and his leadership has been a big part of the lives of thousands of Maillardville youth over six decades,” Stewart told The Tri-City News this week, adding, “Maillardville and Coquitlam owe Jean and Suzanne Lambert tremendously for their vision and for his commitment to youth for 60 years. So many of Coquitlam’s leaders — business persons, community activists, supporters — grew up in the scouting movement.”
But despite Lambert’s efforts over the years, only the Maillardville group is active today. Ben Johnston oversees about 50 French-speaking children (both boys and girls) between the ages of seven and 18, some of whom travel from as far as North Vancouver and Surrey for meetings at the Fatima church hall.
“Children join because their parents see the value of our program; the French is an added bonus,” Monique said. “They become leaders themselves because they enjoy the personal benefits and rewards of working closely with youngsters, and then they put their own children in scouting and guiding so on and on it goes.”
• Registration for the Groupe de Maillardville ends at the end of November. Call 604-936-3624 or email [email protected].
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@jwarrenTC
